Home/Business/The Sandpiper Inn Opens To Public with a Holiday Wedding Celebration

The first guests of the hotel, located in Schooner Bay, were M/M Steve Smith from Long Beach, California who are return visitors to Schooner Bay and were in-house for 5 nights to join friends and family to celebrate a small wedding gathering that took place at the Schooner Bay Beach Cabana and with a reception/dinner at The Sandpiper Inn

The Sandpiper Inn Opens To Public with a Holiday Wedding Celebration

The directors and owners of The Sandpiper Inn were pleased to announce the recent opening of their hotel.

The first guests of the hotel, located in Schooner Bay, were M/M Steve Smith from Long Beach, California who are return visitors to Schooner Bay and were in-house for 5 nights to join friends and family to celebrate a small wedding gathering that took place at the Schooner Bay Beach Cabana and with a reception/dinner at The Sandpiper Inn

The Sandpiper Inn is a 100% Bahamian owned and operated business. The Sandpiper Inn employs 4 full time and 3 part time staff – all residents of South Abaco. Consultant Chef Quinton Outten is from Nassau with accomplished experience throughout The Bahamas and has helped open The Sandpiper with rave reviews over the holidays.

According to Sandpiper Inn VP & Managing Director – James A. Malcolm, the Inn’s opening is an important milestone for the south Abaco economy with the expectation of an additional $2m – $3m in much needed annual visitor spend and other economic activity for the region. He added the Inn’s critical support for locally caught, grown and made products. This is taking place already at the inn – with fresh seafood provided by fishermen in Sandy Point, Crossing Rocks and Cherokee Sound, abundant organic farm produce from Lightbourn Farms right at The Commons – Schooner Bay and all baked & pastry products provided by ladies in villages of Crossing Rocks and Sandy Point.

The Sandpiper Inn business model and operation is a successful example of the genuine importance of Bahamians partnering in and investing in such enterprises – in their own country, as well as in the largest economic sector (tourism).

The Sandpiper’s ambiance evokes the real character of the Bahamas – elegant, but simple – and complements in scale and design the eclectic mix of vernacular styles found along Schooner Bay’s Bay Street corridor. It is the goal of Sandpiper Inn to attain 4-star status in 2-3 years time, but retain its simple, casual and traditional feel.

The Sandpiper Inn – is also now one among those that follow the time tested model for Out Island hotels – seen at such loved places as The Landing, The Pink Sands & The Dunmore on Harbour Island or The Hope Town Harbour Lodge and Green Turtle Cay Club in The Abacos, just to name a few.

The Sandpiper Inn began construction in October 2013 and now offers 7 refined rooms & suites in the main Inn property and 6 vacation cottages spread through the village for a total inventory of more than 24 bedrooms to offer.

The Sandpiper Inn is Schooner Bay’s first full-service inn and restaurant on the harbour front – seating up to 30 indoors, “Medicine Chest” bar, plus expansive verandahs, patios, gardens and pool deck – serving the village residents, boaters, visitors and the general public. The design is inspired by the lovely architectural patterns one sees in both Harbour Island and Charleston, SC and comprises a two-and-half story traditional Bahamian verandah house accompanied by two duplex Town Cottages – all with views to the water. The nearby village cottages are lovely mix 2, 3 & 4 bedroom waterfront units some with docks. Please see www.dsbbahamas.com/cottages for more.

With its restaurant, bar, pool and other inn services and central location, The Sandpiper Inn has already become the popular meeting place in the heart of Schooner Bay Village

The culinary experience for The Sandpiper Inn has been created by an accomplished Bahamian chef, utilizing the fresh seafood (pan seared fresh Hogfish is top dish) available from the bountiful waters off south Abaco, as well as the organic farm products from Lightbourn Farms, located at The Commons at Schooner Bay.

The inn will offer a variety of different rates & packages such as B&B, “dinner & a room”, and modified American plans to allow flexibility in catering to a diverse clientele. The Sandpiper Inn is partners with carrier Sky Bahamas (www.skybahamas.net) and will be offering affordable “air-land-hotel” bookings in the New Year for both Nassau and South Florida residents.

Interiors by acclaimed designer, Amanda Lindroth, complete the effect of “understated sophistication”, helping to make The Sandpiper Inn a charming, inviting staple of the Schooner Bay waterfront in the tradition of other iconic Amanda designs such as Old Fort Club, Dunmore Beach Club and The Balmoral.

VP & Managing Director – James A. Malcolm – a founding member of the Schooner Bay project for over 6 years (Sales Director 2009-2014), originally hails from Harbour Island. – where his great great uncle (Herbert Malcolm) and grandfather (Allen Malcolm) founded and started The Pink Sands Hotel in 1951 and ran it as the family business for more than 38 years. In 1995 James was hired by Chris Blackwell/Island Outpost as General Manager when The Pink Sands reopened after a 3 year closure as result of Hurricane Andrew. James was an Account Executive with Maritz Travel Company from 1997-2005 and then with the Ministry of Tourism from 2005-2008.

Schooner Bay Village began development in mid-2007 and now more than 26 houses and several businesses exist around a viable harbour (boats to 65ft.) open to the Atlantic – with dockage, fuel, general store, golf cart & bikes rentals, beach club, art studio, farm, fishing lodge and clinic. This new and unique destination in the making since 2007, fully open to the public has become more discovered in recent years – with the visitation numbers having grown, and the overall tourism activity is expected to blossom in 2015.

In 2013 Schooner Bay won the urbanism award from the Institute of Classical Architecture in a field of formidable design entries – a first for a Bahamian project. Schooner Bay Village was conceived, created and developed by renowned community builder and Bahamas visionary – Orjan Lindroth who lives in Nassau and is also a homeowner at Schooner Bay.

For more information and advance bookings, please contact James Malcolm at james@sandpiperabaco.com or 1-242-376-9858. Please also see www.sandpiperabaco.com